JURIST - Paper Chase: France prime minister to propose same-sex marriage bill in October

[JURIST] French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Saturday that he will introduce a bill in October to the National Assembly and Senate [official websites, in French] that would allow same-sex couples to get married and adopt children. Ayrault made this statement in a speech at an annual gathering of the French Socialist Party (PS) [official website, in French] in La Rochelle. His announcement echoes and expands on statements made by Ayrault in June to a French television channel promising that laws legalizing same-sex marriage and adoption would be introduced [JURIST report]. Proposal of this bill would also fulfill campaign promises made by President Francois Hollande earlier this year.

Last month, Junior Minister for Families Dominique Bertinotti [official profile, in French] also announced [JURIST report] that same-sex marriage would be legalized by the end of next year, despite controversy over the issue in France over the past few years. Bertinotti's statement came a year after the National Assembly rejected a bill [JURIST report] that would have legalized same-sex marriage. France's Constitutional Council [official website, in French] also dealt a blow to same-sex marriage supporters last year, ruling [JURIST report] that a ban on same-sex marriage did not violate the constitution.